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26 February 2018

How Reading Will Help You Transform Your Life for the Better

Go read. A comic book, the newspaper, a fictional novel. It doesn’t matter, just go read. We’re told to read something, anything from a very young age, but for what purpose? Why does reading matter so much?

Your answer will differ depending on if you ask a bookworm or someone else who’s asking the same questions above, but the simple answer is that reading drives literacy. Reading anything exciting drives basic literacy, because one book leads to another. It is a general misconception that knowing how to write well or learning how to write better is when their literacy improves, but it all begins with reading. How are you to know what writing well is, or what gives that jumble of letters that you write meaning except through reading?

#1 - Reading Improves Intelligence

You don’t even have to read something scholarly because as you read, your brain is working to stare at those words and translate them into thoughts and ideas. This process seems effortless outwardly but is a fantastic and intricate thing that signals your brain is working. Obviously, if you wanted to be stronger physically, you’d work out. Your mind is merely another muscle, and it needs exercise too. The top criminal defense lawyers didn’t get to where they are without hours reading to pass the bar, defend their clients, etc. To become truly intelligent, reading is a must.

Whether you’re reading fiction or nonfiction, you are exposed to new information. It’s literally as natural as breathing to crave new details about the world around you. It’s a drive that initially stemmed from a need to survive long before books were around but now has morphed into trying to figure out the people and new things that surround us. When reading, you live numerous lives, and exposure to each of those unique lives gives readers a clearer understanding of the inner workings of humankind.

#4 - Reading can be a Far Cheaper Option Than Therapy

By all means, if true mental help is necessary, seek out therapy. However, along with the insight of people around the world, reading a story on a breakup, for example, when you’re in the middle of a breakup, can soothe inner turmoil. There may not be anyone who can relate to your situation entirely, but books don’t say that they don’t understand. There’s always a character willing to empathize with you or be angry, or whatever other emotions you might be stewing in.

#5 - Reading Improves Memory

Going back to working out that brain that just sits around all day, it’s been proven time and time again that readers possess better memories. Having to remember all of those characters, that favorite quote, and numerous other details make your brain work. As long as you keep reading, your brain’s stamina keeps improving, and you’ll be able to remember other things like where you put your phone down last, or what time that appointment was for.

#6 - Reading Is the Most Easily Attainable Attractive Quality

We’ve moved far beyond the days of just requiring food and shelter to survive. Now, in addition to those things, we crave intellectual conversations with our fellow human beings. When you read, you’re becoming smarter. Intelligence, legitimate or perceived, is an attractive quality that shapes who we like to be around, be it friends or more serious relationships.

#7 - Reading Truly Drives Literacy

It can’t be said often enough. Reading is often considered the more important half of being an intelligent being, but it supports writing too. New experiences rub off on you, so when listening to music or seeing new things, take a minute to think how they’re affecting your thought process. Reading an extraordinary novel, for instance, influences how you write.

#8 - Speaking of Reading

If you read more, you can often write more, and better. With these two in hand, you’re unstoppable, almost. Reading also impacts your speech. Training to become smarter by reading books that are increasingly difficult often means discovering new words that eventually weave themselves into your overall vocabulary, and give you a broader range of words to use to describe your surroundings.

While no one finds every single thing that they read interesting, and indeed, sometimes reading is explicitly used just to learn about something you really may not have interest in, it is a crucial building block of both an intelligent and fulfilling lifestyle. There’s not an attainable downside to reading. Many things cannot be accomplished without reading, so instead of dreading the next book, try viewing it as an opportunity to become smarter, more attractive, and just a better-rounded individual.

Quick Notes

Thanks for all of your kind emails and messages! I am still working on a few changes behind the scenes, but I did implement a few new topics of which YOU are interested-- a DIY section, Good Deals, and new book reviews.

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